Top 10 Fashion Design Colleges in India
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Want to join a fashion design college? Find out the top 10 fashion design schools in India, their list of courses, and how you can secure admission to them. Scroll on for more details.
Top Design Colleges
The best way to meet the right people and establish a career in this field is by joining a good fashion design institute. However, owing to the ever-growing demand for this course, more and more fashion design training institutes are opening up. Thus, in such a scenario, it is advisable to know which institutes/ colleges offer the best training and education in this field.
To help aspirants, Shiksha has compiled a list of the best fashion design colleges in the country, as per the India Today Ranking 2025. Below, aspirants can find detailed information about the top 10 fashion design colleges in India.
- Top Fashion Design Colleges in India 2026 - India Today Rankings
- Top Design Colleges in India 2025 Govt. & Private: Rankings, Admissions, Placements & Courses: IIRF Ranking
- Top Fashion Design Colleges in India - Previous Year Ranking (India Today Rankings)
- Top Colleges of Design and Courses Offered
Top Fashion Design Colleges in India 2026 - India Today Rankings
The top fashion design colleges are:
| 2025 Rank India Today Ranking | 2024 Rank India Today Ranking | Institute Name |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | NIFT, New Delhi |
| 2 | 3 | NIFT, Bengaluru |
| 3 | 2 | NIFT, Mumbai |
| 4 | 4 | NIFT, Hyderabad |
| 5 | 5 | NIFT, Chennai |
| 6 | 8 | NIFT, Patna |
| 6 | 6 | NIFT, Gandhinagar |
| 8 | 7 | NIFT, Kolkata |
| 9 | 10 | NIFT, Jodhpur |
| 10 | 9 | Pearl Academy, New Delhi |
| 11 | 11 | NIFT, Kannur |
| 12 | 12 | Symbiosis Institute of Design |
| 13 | 14 | NIFT, Raebareli |
| 14 | 15 | NIFT, Shillong |
| 15 | 16 | Army Institute of Fashion Design |
| 16 | 17 | NIFT, Kangra |
| 17 | 18 | Pearl Academy, Jaipur |
| 18 | 20 | Amity School, Noida |
| 19 | 21 | Pearl Academy, Mumbai |
| 20 | 23 | Amity School, Lucknow |
| 21 | 22 | NIFT-TEA, Tiruppur |
| 22 | 25 | WUD, School of Fashion |
| 23 | NP | Amity School, Kolkata |
| 24 | 26 | IMS Design & Innovation Academy |
| 25 | 30 | Amity School, Mumbai |
Top Design Colleges in India 2025 Govt. & Private: Rankings, Admissions, Placements & Courses: IIRF Ranking
Check out the government colleges based on the IIRF Ranking.
| All India Rank*(Survey & Perceptive Based) |
Name of Institutes |
State |
State Rank |
Employability |
Teaching Learning Resources |
Faculty |
Infrastructure |
Projects and Case Study |
Innovation |
Overall Index Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | |||||
| 1 |
NID Ahmedabad - National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad | Gujarat | 1 | 83 | 81 | 77.2 | 80.9 | 76.2 | 80.2 | 80.29 |
| 2 |
NID Madhya Pradesh - National Institute of Design, Bhopal | Madhya Pradesh | 1 | 82.6 | 80.4 | 73.8 | 76 | 79 | 80 | 78.83 |
| 3 |
IIT Bombay - Indian Institute of Technology, IDC School of Design, Mumbai | Maharashtra | 1 | 79 | 77.8 | 73.2 | 85.1 | 73 | 80.1 | 78.05 |
| 4 |
IIT Delhi - Indian Institute of Technology, Department of Design, Delhi | Delhi | 1 | 79 | 73.9 | 74 | 84 | 78 | 73.4 | 77 |
| 5 |
NID Andhra Pradesh - National Institute of Design, Guntur | Andhra Pradesh | 1 | 80 | 72.9 | 75 | 80.2 | 69 | 76.92 | 76.16 |
| 6 |
NID Haryana - National Institute of Design, Kurukshetra | Haryana | 1 | 76.58 | 72.7 | 75.3 | 83 | 66.3 | 77 | 75.52 |
| 7 |
IIT Kanpur - Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur | Uttar Pradesh | 1 | 70.2 | 78 | 77.7 | 80.12 | 67.4 | 75.1 | 75.26 |
| 8 |
IIT Roorkee - Indian Institute of Technology, Department of Design, Roorkee | Uttarakhand | 1 | 70 | 72 | 79.8 | 81.34 | 75.2 | 71.1 | 74.65 |
| 9 |
IIT Guwahati - Indian Institute of Technology, Department of Design, Guwahati | Assam | 1 | 71.62 | 77 | 75.6 | 74.2 | 74.1 | 67.5 | 74.06 |
| 10 |
NID Assam - National Institute of Design, Jorhat | Assam | 2 | 72.8 | 70.4 | 75.8 | 81.9 | 66 | 74 | 73.71 |
| 11 |
IIITDM Jabalpur - Indian Institute of Information Technology Design and Manufacturing, Jabalpur | Madhya Pradesh | 2 | 69.9 | 77.4 | 72.2 | 75.9 | 71.4 | 72.74 | 73.45 |
| 12 |
IIT Hyderabad - Indian Institute of Technology, Department of Design, Hyderabad | Telangana | 1 | 71.8 | 70.6 | 75.54 | 72 | 76 | 73 | 72.7 |
| 13 |
Delhi Technological University, Department of Design, Delhi | Delhi | 2 | 69.6 | 74.1 | 75.2 | 71.8 | 72.7 | 64.7 | 72.08 |
| 14 |
JNAFAU SPA - Jawaharlal Nehru Architecture and Fine Arts University, School of Planning and Architecture, Hyderabad | Telangana | 2 | 70.6 | 69.5 | 70.1 | 77 | 73.6 | 74 | 71.66 |
| 15 |
FDDI Noida - Footwear Design and Development Institute | Uttar Pradesh | 2 | 68.8 | 69.9 | 73.56 | 77.5 | 66.6 | 71.2 | 71.32 |
| 16 |
Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh | Chandigarh | 1 | 69.2 | 74.2 | 66.9 | 75 | 69.1 | 70.3 | 70.93 |
| 17 |
Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, New Delhi | Delhi | 3 | 68.7 | 69.6 | 74.64 | 73.16 | 66.1 | 69 | 70.6 |
| 18 |
University of Mumbai, Garware Institute of Career Education and Development, Mumbai | Maharashtra | 2 | 69.1 | 68.9 | 73.9 | 71.2 | 72 | 63 | 70.13 |
| 19 |
Netaji Subhas University of Technology, Department of Design, Delhi | Delhi | 4 | 68.12 | 69.8 | 67.3 | 72 | 73.7 | 70 | 69.54 |
| 20 |
Kerala State Institute of Design, Kollam | Kerala | 1 | 69.4 | 68.3 | 69.1 | 69.9 | 67 | 69.1 | 68.93 |
| 21 |
Tezpur University, Department of Design, Tezpur | Assam | 3 | 68.3 | 67.3 | 68 | 73.1 | 65.4 | 70.1 | 68.6 |
| 22 |
Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University, School of Architecture & Landscape Design, Jammu | Jammu & Kashmir | 1 | 69 | 62.8 | 69.1 | 69.18 | 70 | 75.4 | 68.03 |
| 23 |
Utkal University of Culture - UUC Odisha, Bhubaneswar | Odisha | 1 | 66.34 | 64 | 67 | 71.2 | 76 | 69.4 | 67.6 |
| 24 |
The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Faculty of Fine Arts, Vadodara | Gujarat | 2 | 67 | 65.8 | 67.1 | 64.2 | 69 | 71.52 | 66.78 |
| 25 |
Swami Ramanand Teerth Marathwada University, Swarrnim Institute of Design, Nanded | Maharashtra | 3 | 66 | 60.9 | 67.54 | 71.18 | 66.8 | 70 | 66.15 |
| 26 |
Gujarat University, School of Design, Ahmedabad | Gujarat | 3 | 62.8 | 63.1 | 65.36 | 71.2 | 70 | 68 | 65.59 |
| 27 |
Central Institute of Technology, Department of Multimedia Communication and Design, Kokrajhar | Assam | 4 | 61.8 | 63.9 | 66.4 | 70.16 | 66.1 | 65.1 | 65.07 |
| 28 |
Bundelkhand University, Institute of Architecture and Town Planning, Jhansi | Uttar Pradesh | 3 | 62.18 | 62 | 69.4 | 69.2 | 65.6 | 60.36 | 64.78 |
| 29 |
CSJM - Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University, School of Engineering and Technology, Kanpur | Uttar Pradesh | 4 | 61.8 | 61.9 | 66.8 | 66.2 | 68.6 | 67.8 | 64.45 |
| 30 |
Gurugram University, Department of Engineering and Technology , Gurgaon | Haryana | 2 | 62.8 | 62.9 | 66.54 | 65.58 | 66.1 | 60.4 | 64.09 |
Top Fashion Design Colleges in India - Previous Year Ranking (India Today Rankings)
The following table shows the previous year's ranking given by India Today:
| Name of the Institute |
India Today Ranking 2024 |
India Today 2023 Ranking |
India Today 2022 Ranking |
India Today 2021 Ranking |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
| 2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
|
| 3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
|
| 5 |
4 |
4 |
4 |
|
| 6 |
6 |
5 |
6 |
|
| 8 |
7 |
6 |
5 |
|
| 5 |
5 |
7 |
7 |
|
| 7 |
8 |
8 |
8 |
|
| 9 |
9 |
9 |
9 |
|
| NIFT Jodhpur |
10 |
10 |
- |
- |
| 12 |
11 |
10 |
10 |
|
| 14 |
14 |
11 |
11 |
|
| Army Institute of Fashion and Design |
16 |
15 |
12 |
13 |
| 11 |
13 |
13 |
- |
|
| 15 |
16 |
14 |
12 |
|
| 13 |
12 |
15 |
- |
|
| 18 |
18 |
16 |
14 |
|
| 17 |
17 |
17 |
16 |
|
| 19 |
20 |
18 |
17 |
|
| 20 |
19 |
19 |
15 |
|
| 22 |
22 |
20 |
18 |
|
| - |
26 |
22 |
23 |
|
| 28 |
- |
23 |
19 |
|
| - |
23 |
24 |
24 |
|
| - |
24 |
25 |
28 |
|
| - |
28 |
26 |
22 |
|
| - |
29 |
27 |
27 |
|
| - |
27 |
28 |
25 |
|
| - |
- |
29 |
26 |
|
| Department of Fashion Technology, Sona College of Technology, Salem |
- |
30 |
30 |
- |
| - |
33 |
31 |
- |
|
| - |
31 |
32 |
- |
|
| - |
32 |
33 |
- |
|
| - |
34 |
34 |
- |
|
| - |
41 |
35 |
- |
|
| - |
40 |
36 |
- |
|
| - |
37 |
37 |
- |
|
| - |
- |
38 |
- |
|
| - |
43 |
39 |
- |
|
| - |
39 |
40 |
- |
|
| - |
46 |
41 |
- |
|
| Department of Fashion and Textiles IIS, Jaipur |
- |
- |
42 |
- |
| - |
44 |
43 |
- |
|
| - |
45 |
44 |
- |
|
| Department of Costume Design & Fashion Kongu Arts and Science College, Erode |
- |
47 |
45 |
- |
| - |
48 |
46 |
- |
|
| Department of Fashion Designing Sardar Patel Mahavidyalaya Chandrapur, Chandrapur |
- |
49 |
47 |
- |
| - |
42 |
48 |
- |
|
| - |
51 |
49 |
- |
|
| - |
- |
- |
20 |
|
| - |
- |
- |
21 |
|
| - |
- |
- |
29 |
|
| - |
- |
- |
30 |
NIFT Bengaluru has 190 BDes and 38 BFTech seats. NIFT Bengaluru is one of the leading fashion design colleges in India. The admission cut-off for the institute tends to be higher, so the candidate must have a high merit rank to have a good chance of admission. Admission to both the BDes and BFTech courses at the institute will be conducted on the basis of the merit rank of the candidate in the NIFT 2023 exam. Candidates seeking admission to the BDes programme need to appear in the CAT GAT and Situation Test. However, BFTech applicants only need to take the GAT exam.
The candidate will be able to select their choice of NIFT 2025 participating institutes (in the order of priority) at the time of filling out the NIFT 2025 counseling registration form.
Online registration for NIFT 2025 counseling will start soon after the final results are declared.
The counseling registrations for NIFT 2025 will be open to candidates who have qualified in the NIFT 2025 entrance exam.
The allotment of seats (or campus) to the B. Des programme will be on the basis of merit rank of the candidate in the NIFT 2025 entrance exam and campus selected. So, candidates who are higher in the NIFT 2025 merit rank will be given preference in the seat allotment.
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Top Colleges of Design and Courses Offered
The following are some of the top colleges for Designing.
NIFT Delhi
Admission Through: NIFT Entrance Exam
It was established in 1986 by the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India. National Institute of Fashion Design (NIFT), Delhi, was set up in technical collaboration with the FIT, New York. NIFT Delhi is one of the best design colleges in the country, and it has its head office in New Delhi.
As per the official website, NIFT Delhi offers regular as well as Continuing Education (CE) programmes to students. The design school also has the oldest and richest Resource Centre, containing massive collections of print and non-print materials.
NIFT Delhi has notable alumni, such as Rohit Bal, Ritu Beri, Manish Arora and the like. Aspirants can learn more about famous Indian fashion designers and how they achieved success.
Courses offered at NIFT Delhi:
| PhD Programmes in Design |
NIFT Mumbai
Admission Through: NIFT Entrance Exam
It is considered to be the second-best Fashion Design institute in the country. NIFT Mumbai was established in 1995. The infrastructure of the college is top-notch and equipped to cater to all the requirements of fashion design courses.
The college has highly trained faculty with strong industry connections and offers employment opportunities to aspirants across all NIFT centres.
Courses offered at NIFT Mumbai:
| BDes Fashion Design | BDes Accessory Design |
| BDes Textile Design | BDes Knitwear Design |
| BDes Fashion Communication | BFTech Apparel Production |
| MDes | MFM |
NIFT Bengaluru
Admission Through: NIFT Entrance Exam
Considered to be one of the best fashion design schools in the country, NIFT Bengaluru’s campus is fully equipped with lecture rooms, resource centres, design studios and labs, gym, hostels and activity centres.
As per the official website, NIFT Bengaluru has signed MOUs with various member institutes of IFFTI. Some of the prominent ones being Hogeskolan I Boras, Sweden; Birmingham School of Art & Design, UK and RMIT, Australia, etc.
Top recruiters who visit NIFT Bengaluru for campus placements are 99 Labels, Cairon, Dhananjai Apparels Pvt Ltd, Fine Stitches, Alok Industries, Pure Earth Pvt Ltd, ITC Infotech, Pal Fashions and Vintage Shades.
Courses offered at NIFT Bengaluru:
NIFT Chennai
Admission Through: NIFT Entrance Exam
This fashion design college offers state-of-the-art facilities to its students. The campus of NIFT Chennai is such that students and faculty members have access to the inner courtyard and outer courtyard that is attached with a table tennis court, basketball court, badminton court and a gymnasium.
Students are offered (broadband) wi-fi internet facility round the clock. Also, students are offered free shuttle service for industrial visits.
Courses Offered at NIFT Chennai:
| - |
Admission Through: NIFT Entrance Exam
Established in June 2008, NIFT Patna initially operated out of its transit campus that was located at Udyog Bhavan, Gandhi Maidan at Patna. However, in 2014, the design college started classes from its permanent campus situated at Mithapur Farms, Patna.
NIFT Patna’s campus includes - Accessory Design Lab, 3D Printer, Photography Studio, Mac Lab, Garment Construction Lab, Pattern Making Lab, Textile Design Studio, Textile Testing Lab, Digital Studios and IT Labs and Weaving Studio.
Courses offered at NIFT Patna:
Admission Through: NIFT Entrance Exam
Established in 1995 as a temporary campus, NIFT Gandhinagar was later allotted an area of 20,000 sq mts for a permanent campus.
NIFT Gandhinagar’s permanent campus became operational in 2004. Thereafter, the fashion design college was allotted an additional area of 10,000 sq m to build the girls’ hostel, the director’s bungalow, as well as the staff quarters. The hotel can accommodate up to 202 students on twin twin-sharing basis.
Courses offered at NIFT Gandhinagar:
NIFT Hyderabad
![[India Today Rank 2021: 7]](https://images.shiksha.com/mediadata/images/articles/1628838518php4GMO3W.jpeg)
Admission Through: NIFT Entrance Exam
The foundation stone of NIFT Hyderabad was laid in 1995. Initially, NIFT Hyderabad operated from Chenetha Bhavan, Nampally, Hyderabad. In 1999, NIFT Hyderabad was shifted to Madhapur, where the design school was spread over an area of five acres.
The architectural grandeur, as well as the aesthetic appeal of NIFT Hyderabad’s campus, is widely admired by one and all. Hostel facility at NIFT Hyderabad is offered only to girls, and that too on a first-come-first-serve basis. There are up to 238 rooms in the hostel. No hostel facility is offered to boys.
Courses Offered at NIFT Hyderabad:
| - |
NIFT Kolkata
Admission Through: NIFT Entrance Exam
Established in 1995, NIFT Kolkata was initially located at Manjusha Bhavan, Salt Lake. NIFT Kolkata shifted to its five-acre campus at Salt Lake in 1999. NIFT is among the five oldest National Institutes of Fashion Technology in India.
Facilities offered to students at NIFT Kolkata include three conference halls, 44 classrooms, fully equipped labs, 3D printers, a laser cutting machine, an ETON overhead material carrying system, a Shima Seiki computerised knitting machine, digital tablets, a digital printing machine, and soft body dress forms. Apart from this, the Resource Centre at NIFT Kolkata houses over 15,000 books and has a huge material collection which includes fabric swatches, traditional costumes, fashion garments, as well as textiles and accessories
Courses offered at NIFT Kolkata:
Pearl Academy New Delhi
Admission Through: Pearl Academy Entrance Exam
Established in 1993 by the Little People Education Society and registered under the Societies Registration Act 1860, Pearl Academy of Fashion was initially promoted by an Indian export house known by the name of House of Pearl Fashions Ltd.
Pearl Academy’s first campus was located at Okhla, South Delhi, but later the college moved to a much larger campus in West Delhi’s Naraina.
At Pearl Academy, aspirants can pursue an International Bachelor’s Degree or an Indian Bachelor’s Degree. Pearl Academy facilitates admission of students in courses offered at the University of Derby, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK and Torrens University, Australia.
Courses offered at Pearl Academy, New Delhi:
| BA Fashion Design |
BA Fashion Styling and Image Design |
| BA Fashion Media Communication |
BA Interior Architecture & Design |
| BA Interior Product Design |
BA Fashion Business Management |
| BA Fashion Marketing and Retail Management |
BA Branding and Advertising Management |
| BA Luxury Brand Management |
BA Jewellery Design |
| BA Communication Design (choice of four pathways: Experience Design, Graphic Design & Advertising, Interactive Media Design and Film & Animation) |
|
| PG Course in Accessory Design |
PG Course in Communication Design |
| PG Course in Interior Design & Styling |
PG Course in Product Design |
Symbiosis Institute of Design
Admission Through: SEED
Established in 2006, Symbiosis Institute of Design (SID), Pune, is spread over an area of 80,000 sq ft. The official website informs that “The campus of Symbiosis Institute of Design at Viman Nagar houses state-of-the-art design studios, laboratories, workshops, IT infrastructure, rapid prototyping lab, well-equipped classrooms, library, exhibition areas, seminar hall, conference hall, etc. The campus also has an amphitheatre, an ultra-modern auditorium and an academic plaza for various activities, including design shows. The entire campus is Wi-Fi enabled”.
As per the official website, students from SID, Pune have been hired at firms such as “Infosys, Autoline Industries Ltd, Cognizant Ltd, Whirlpool, Mudra Communications, etc. Students have also been absorbed by small and medium-scale enterprises such as Elephant Design, Fitch Design, Onio Design, Leaf Design, and several design corners.
Courses Offered at SID:
| BDes Textile Design |
|
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Sayeba Naushad is a commerce postgraduate from Banaras Hindu University. She has over five years of experience in content writing and editing. She has a nose for current events in design field. At Shiksha.com, she s
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Admission to the B. Des programme at UCEED 2026 participating colleges will be on the basis of UCEED 2026 merit rank. So, candidates with a higher rank will get preference in the seat allotment process. The admission committee will also consider the college option opted by the candidate and their order of priority. Note that to get a merit rank in UCEED 2026, candidates must have qualified Part A. In case the candidate fails to qualify Part A, his or her Part B answer booklet will not be evaluated.